Hillside Community Church Podcast

Luke 24:1-12 We spend a good amount of time looking for things.  We look for our car keys, our purses, our eyeglasses—sometimes even our children. We’ll take a look at the story of a group of women who were looking for someone—but they were looking in the wrong place. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Matthew 27:45-56 - Pastor Arek O'Connell Support the show

Throughout His life, people were trying to understand who Jesus was.  Was He a king? Was He the Messiah?  Was He a revolutionary? Was He God? Was He a prophet? For most of His life, Jesus allowed some confusion about who He was - He seemed to be keeping it a secret.  But in this story, we’ll see Jesus make a clear declaration (without saying a word) of who He is. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Sometimes we’d rather just not have to decide. We want to abstain from voting, not take a stand, not choose one side or the other. Sometimes this is okay.  But not always. This morning we’ll see how Pilate discovered that he couldn’t avoid this question: What’s he supposed to do with Jesus? He wants to pass on the question. Ignore it. But he can’t. None of us can.  All of us need to have some sort...

Having spent several hours in prayer, Jesus is now ready to begin the final stages on His road to the cross. It begins with His arrest, with Judas showing up with a mob and betraying Him with a kiss. As Jesus deals with Judas, His disciples and the mob, we see God’s love in action—the willingness of Jesus to give His life for us. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Life is really difficult sometimes. There come times where we are ready to throw our hands up in surrender and yell “I can’t do this anymore!” Even Jesus felt this way during his life. When we feel like we can’t go on anymore what do we do? Who do we turn to? Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane shows us that in our times of need, God sustains us through one another, prayer, and His grace. - Pastor A...

For many of us, when we hear about someone who is caught in a scandal or who was caught doing something very wrong, we have one of two thoughts. We might think, “I would never do that!!”  Or we might think, “Would I ever do that?” The fact is that sometimes the Bible calls us to recognize that we are not as strong as we think we are. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Do you ever feel like you want to do “the right thing” but it felt like “the right thing” kept on changing? I think the disciples sometimes felt that way with Jesus. There were times when they were sure they knew what Jesus wanted them to do. But then they would discover that they still didn’t get it. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

When we are learning something, we need to start with the basics.  We learn to play a scale on a piano. We learn to read simple books before we tackle War and Peace . We walk before we run. The same is true in our Christian faith. This morning we’ll look at a list of normal, everyday commands that Paul gives to the Thessalonians. They aren’t necessarily flashy, but they are the actions and attitud...

One of the most powerful teachings in the Bible is that Jesus will come back to judge the living and the dead.  Each one of us will stand before Jesus and give an account of our lives—and He knows everything !  What do we need to do to be ready for that day?  Does the Bible give us some “insider information” so that we can make sure we’re ready? - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

What happens to our loved ones when they die? Where do they go? Will we get to see them again someday in heaven? These are questions we ask ourselves in times of grief and loss and desperately want answers for. These are also questions the Thessalonians had for Paul as they expected Jesus to return while also unexpectedly losing loved ones. Paul gives all of us a word of hope rooted in Jesus Chris...

The gospel is the good news that, by His death and resurrection, Jesus has saved us from sin and death. He makes new life available to us freely - it’s completely by grace! But Paul wants us to know that if we accept that gift, it will change us - we will live to please God, not ourselves. This morning we’ll look at how that applies to our sexual lives. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Paul really liked to be with people. For him, there was nothing like doing life together, sharing our lives, helping, challenging and supporting each other. That’s why it was so hard for Paul not to be able to go and visit the Thessalonians. He hated being separated from them. We’ll see why Paul was so passionate about trying too get to see the Thessalonians and what Paul did to try to fill in the...

One thing that hasn’t changed in the past 2,000 years is that people are sometimes skeptical about religious people. Even back in Paul’s day there were people who thought that many preachers and other religious people were really swindlers - charlatans who were taking advantage of others - fleecing the flock. In the passage we’re looking at today, Paul tells us how we can avoid being manipulative...

We were created to make a difference. God created us so that we could have an impact on the people and the world around us. It gives our lives meaning and purpose. We’ll take a look at how we can have an impact on others as a church and as individual believers. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

One of life’s greatest temptations is to pretend we’ve got it all together. It’s much easier to pretend to be someone we’re not than to accept our weaknesses and shortcomings. However, the good news that Paul and the Gospel offers is that God doesn’t need perfect ambassadors to deliver his message of hope to the world. He uses jars of clay to accomplish his purposes. - Pastor Arek O'Connell S...

One of the challenges many of us have faced in the past year has been conflict with other Christians. We may not have been at fault but a relationship was broken. We'll take a look at what Paul did when he was faced with a situation where two Christians he loved were in a broken relationship with each other. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Typically during the Holidays, it is assumed you don't talk politics or religion around the dinner table. However, Luke didn't care much for that rule when he announced the birth of Jesus. Luke had no problem stirring the pot by proclaiming that a baby born in Bethlehem was the true Lord of the world. And if Jesus is the true Lord, it means we have a decision to make. Who will you serve?...

Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Jesus does so many things. He guides us. He befriends us. He encourages us. Today we look at perhaps the most important things Jesus does for us. He saves us. He rescues us. This is great news because we all need saving! - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

There is something inside each one of us that wants peace. Peace between nations, peace within families, peace among neighbors. We want peace. But most of us also feel that peace is not really a possibility—there will always be wars and hostility and fighting. Unless. Unless. Unless God Himself does something. Today we’ll think together about what it means that Jesus is our Prince of Peace. - Past...

As we remember the first coming of Jesus and look forward to His second coming, we’re taking a look at some of the titles that the Bible gives to Jesus. Last week we looked at Jesus as The Messiah. This week we’re going to look at Jesus as The Word.  What does it mean that Jesus is The Word? And what difference does it make to us if He is? - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

On the first Sunday of Advent we set our hopes on the one who has come and who will come again, Jesus Christ. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus was given many unique titles to help us understand who Jesus is and how we should relate to him. We begin with the first title the Gospel gives Jesus, “The Messiah.” What does it mean that Jesus is the Messiah and how does it affect our lives today? - Pastor A...

There’s a difference between saying thank you and being thankful. Saying thank you is important, but God really calls us to be thankful . It’s that sense of gratitude that we  seek and that God calls us to have. Today we will discuss the five keys to nurturing gratitude. - Pastor Ron Kool Support the show

Beginning Again: In Love As we've been working our way through I Corinthians 13, we've learned that love is essential to all ministry and we've learned about the characteristics of love. This morning we'll learn that while other gifts and abilities are good, Love is the greatest. - Pastor Ron Kool To give, please visit: https://pushpay.com/g/hillsidechgr Support the show